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Chapter 391: Chapter 391: His Appearance Follows His Dad
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Tong Yao had just finished a bowl of porridge when there was a knock at the door. She initially thought it was Lin Fengying, but instead found Wang Xia standing outside.
"Did the breast milk I pumped last night fill up the baby’s tummy? I couldn’t stand the thought of the kid being hungry, so I came over to check." As a mother herself, Wang Xia couldn’t bear to see a small child hungry. She’d just fed her own kid before coming straight over.
"It was just enough for the night. Come in and sit. Haven’t you had breakfast yet? Ahchen bought a lot of steamed buns and porridge. Let’s eat together!"
Tong Yao invited Wang Xia in and was about to get some bowls and chopsticks from the kitchen, when Wang Xia halted her.
"No need, I’ve already eaten."
She glanced in the direction of the bedroom, didn’t see Lin Fengying, and asked in a low voice, "Where did your mother-in-law go? Has she been complaining about you to your husband?"
Tong Yao was amused by Wang Xia’s cautious expression and replied, "She’s staying at the inn. I guess she hasn’t woken up yet. She didn’t win last night’s grievances battle." Last night, Lin Fengying had even pulled out all the stops employing a self-pity plan.
"That’s good then." Wang Xia smiled in relief and said, "Doctor Si does not look like he would be easily manipulated. You two should discuss your issues properly. Don’t let your mother-in-law’s issues become your arguments. It’s not worth it."
Just as Tong Yao was about to reply, the baby started crying in the room. Wang Xia quickly discovered that the baby had wet himself. Ablely, she changed his diaper and pulled up her shirt to breastfeed.
Seeing her feed effortlessly, like she’s caring for her own child, Tong Yao knew immediately that Wang Xia was straightforward and without many hidden agendas. This rapidly improved her impression of Wang Xia, and she made a mental note to repay Wang Xia, perhaps with some meat as a token of appreciation.
After all, breastfeeding required plenty of nutrients.
"This kid is handsome; his parents must also be good-looking." Wang Xia looked down at the guzzling baby, feeling as warm as if she were feeding her own child. "Honestly, the only reason I’m letting him feed directly is because he’s incredibly cute. If he were ugly, it would be annoying to feed him."
Tong Yao replied nonchalantly, "He takes after his father."
"No wonder he’s so handsome. If Doctor Si is as handsome as he is, his father must also be handsome. Unlike my husband, who’s not even thirty and already has a bald spot on his head. I don’t want our baby to resemble his father."
Wang Xia was a local from Kyoto who spoke her mind and was quite candid. Although her husband was older, their relationship was pretty good despite meeting through a blind date.
She glanced down at her dark skin and her husband’s balding head and said that they were like "a turtle looking at green beans" - they were eyes matched together.
As they continued to chat, Lin Fengying returned. She appeared as though she didn’t get a good night’s sleep and had dark circles around her eyes. Well, she had abruptly taken away her grandson, and now the couple had come looking for them - it was no wonder she hadn’t slept well.
From the moment Lin Fengying entered the house, Tong Yao felt that something was off in her expression. Though she wasn’t sure what. 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓅𝓊𝓫.𝒸ℴ𝓶
Wang Xia didn’t particularly like Lin Fengying. Seeing that she had returned, Wang Xia put the baby down and headed for home, reminding on her way out, "Yaoyao, if the baby is hungry, take him to my house. Until his mother can feed him, I will be responsible for breastfeeding."
After watching Tong Yao see off Wang Xia, Lin Fengying said, "Once Lijuan is here and if she asks what the baby has been eating, just say it’s formula milk. We don’t want her to know that he’s been eating someone else’s breast milk. We don’t know Wang Xia’s health status. What if any potential illnesses are passed to the baby?"
At this, Tong Yao realized what was wrong with Lin Fengying. She was previously a timid character, but now she was showing an authoritative, grandmother-esque attitude.
For instance, the sentence she just said wasn’t a suggestion, but a strict command with an additional hint of disapproval - clearly an attempt to dominate.
Tong Yao was amused by this and replied, "Since you prefer it this way, I won’t intrude . Decide which brand of formula milk is good for the baby and buy it yourself! You better know your stuff though once Lijuan asks about it."
This left Lin Fengying speechless, unable to muster a retort.
She was a woman of few words and hadn’t dared to argue with anyone in years. Even if she wanted to exert her authority as a mother-in-law, she wasn’t as sharp as Tong Yao and got rebutted by her in just a few sentences.
Just a few sentences of rebuttal from Tong Yao made Lin Fengying become shaky. Unable to vent her grievances on Tong Yao, Lin Fengying redirected her frustration to the pots and pans in the kitchen during breakfast, making quite a racket.
When Zhang Lijuan and Si Boyi arrived, Lin Fengying was still in a cold war with Tong Yao, staying in separate rooms and ignoring each other.
"Son, mom missed you terribly. Thankfully, you’re okay. Otherwise, I would’ve died. " The first thing Zhang Lijuan did upon entering was rush to the bed to hold her son, crying and kissing him, her heart aching. She was just glad that her baby was okay. Otherwise, she would have had a showdown with Lin Fengying.
"The baby is sleeping. Put him down first; you’re scaring him."
Si Boyi felt relieved seeing the baby was okay and persuaded Zhang Lijuan to let go of the baby. Both of them had dark circles under their eyes. It was clear that they hadn’t slept a wink due to worry.
Tong Yao heated the leftover porridge and steamed buns. Zhang Lijuan and Si Boyi were definitely famished. They drank half of the porridge and ate six steamed buns. They hadn’t completely satisfied their hunger, but at least they were no longer famished.
Since the arrival of the couple, Lin Fengying had remained silent out of guilt. However, that didn’t mean Zhang Lijuan was planning to forget the issue of her taking the baby away without telling anyone. To avoid disturbing the baby’s sleep, Zhang Lijuan even closed the door of the room. Her tired face was a mask of anger.
"Mother, you’re a mature adult, yet you behaved like an irrational intruder, whisking away the baby without informing anyone. Can you imagine how worried we were when we found out that you’d taken our child? What would we have done if someone kidnapped our child? You couldn’t stand the thought of looking after me and the baby before I finished my confinement, and I didn’t say anything about it either. But now, did I do anything to warrant your cruel punishment of taking our child away?"
Si Boyi also harbored resentment against Lin Fengying for her actions, so he decided to remain silent on her side while Zhang Lijuan criticized his mother.
Times had changed, and his mother had been behaving more recklessly, demonstrated by her audacity to abscond with their baby. It was uncertain what she might do next.
Tong Yao was leisurely washing dishes in the kitchen, in no hurry to get involved or mediate. This had nothing to do with her, and she had no intention of poking her nose in others’ business playing the saint.
Apparently, Lin Fengying had changed her attitude towards Tong Yao, trying to establish her dominance like a traditional mother-in-law.
